Juha and the Misers (جحا والبخلاء) — Page 9

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الْبَخِيلُ.

The miser.

عَرَضْنَا لِمَنْ يَضِنُّونَ بِأَتْفَهِ الْأَشْيَاءِ إِذَا أَقْبَلَ عَلَيْهِمُ الدَّهْرُ؛ حَتَّى إِذَا دَهِمَتْهُمُ الْمُصِيبَةُ طَارَتْ نُفُوسُهُمْ شَعَاعًا، فَلَمْ يَنْتَفِعُوا بِشَيْءٍ مِمَّا بَخِلُوا بِهِ، وَظَفِرَ غَيْرُهُمْ بِكُلِّ.

We presented for those who are stingy with the most trivial things when time turns against them; until when calamity strikes them, their souls fly in scattered pieces, so they do not benefit from anything they were stingy with, and others win everything.

جُوعٌ وَظَمَأٌ.

Hunger and thirst.

هُنَا قَصَصْتُ مَا حَدَثَ لِي مَعَ «أَبِي مُرَّةَ»، قُلْتُ: كُنْتُ أَسِيرُ - ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ - فِي إِحْدَى الصَّحْرَاوَاتِ.

Here I narrated what happened to me with 'Abu Murrah', I said: I was walking - one day - in one of the deserts.

كَانَ الْيَوْمُ قَائِظًا شَدِيدَ الْحَرِّ كَادَ الْجَرُّ يَلْتَهِبُ.

The day was scorching, intense in heat, the heat was almost blazing.

نَفِدَ طَعَامِي اشْتَدَّ بِي الْعَطَشُ.

My food ran out, my thirst intensified.

عَضَّنِي الْجُوعُ بِأَنْيَابِهِ. (٩)

Hunger bit me with its fangs.

«أَبُو مُرَّةَ».

'Abu Murrah'.

لَاحَ لِي - مِنْ بَعِيدٍ - شَبَحٌ، مَا إِنْ دَانَيْتُهُ حَتَّى عَرَفْتُهُ.

A ghost appeared to me - from afar -, as soon as I approached it, I recognized it.

كَانَ هُوَ صَاحِبِي «أَبَا مُرَّةَ» الَّذِي حَدَّثْتَنَا بِقِصَّتِهِ مَعَكَ.

It was my companion 'Abu Murrah' whom you told us his story with you.

فَرِحْتُ حِينَ رَأَيْتُهُ جَالِسًا وَأَمَامَهُ شَكْوَةٌ، وَإِلَى جَانِبَهَا أَكْدَاسٌ مِنَ الْقَدِيدِ، وَالْفَطَائِرِ وَالشَّطَائِرِ، وَالْحَلْوَاءِ وَالْفَاكِهَةِ.

I rejoiced when I saw him sitting with a water skin in front of him, and beside it were piles of dried meat, pies, sandwiches, sweets, and fruit.

اِسْتَبْشَرْتُ خَيْرًا.

I rejoiced at the good news.

أَيْقَنْتُ - حِينَئِذٍ - بِقُرْبِ الْفَرَجِ الْعَظِيمِ، اِسْتَوْلَى عَلَى نَفْسِي الْأَمَلُ الْبَاسِمُ، حَلَّ مَحَلَّ الْيَأْسِ الْقَاتِمِ.

I became certain - at that moment - of the nearness of the great relief, the smiling hope took over my soul, settling in the place of the dark despair.

Vocabulary · المفردات (25 verbs · 38 nouns)

• عَرَضَ — to present
• ضَنَّ — to be stingy
• أَقْبَلَ — to approach
• دَهَمَ — to strike suddenly
• طَارَ — to fly
• اِنْتَفَعَ — to benefit
• بَخِلَ — to be stingy
• ظَفِرَ — to win
• قَصَّ — to narrate
• حَدَثَ — to happen
• سَارَ — to walk
• كَادَ — to be on the verge of
• اِلْتَهَبَ — to blaze
• نَفَدَ — to run out
• اِشْتَدَّ — to intensify
• عَضَّ — to bite
• لَاحَ — to appear
• دَانَى — to approach
• عَرَفَ — to know
• فَرِحَ — to rejoice
• رَأَى — to see
• اِسْتَبْشَرَ — to rejoice
• أَيْقَنَ — to be certain
• اِسْتَوْلَى — to take over
• حَلَّ — to settle
• بَخِيلٌ — miser
• شَيْءٌ — thing
• دَهْرٌ — time
• مُصِيبَةٌ — calamity
• نَفْسٌ — soul
• شَعَاعٌ — scattered
• جُوعٌ — hunger
• ظَمَأٌ — thirst
• يَوْمٌ — day
• صَحْرَاءُ — desert
• قَائِظٌ — scorching
• حَرٌّ — heat
• جَرٌّ — heat
• طَعَامٌ — food
• عَطَشٌ — thirst
• نَابٌ — fang
• بَعِيدٌ — distance
• شَبَحٌ — ghost
• صَاحِبٌ — companion
• قِصَّةٌ — story
• جَالِسٌ — sitter
• أَمَامٌ — front
• شَكْوَةٌ — water skin
• جَانِبٌ — side
• كُدْسٌ — piles
• قَدِيدٌ — dried meat
• فَطِيرَةٌ — pie
• شَطِيرَةٌ — sandwich
• حَلْوَاءُ — sweets
• فَاكِهَةٌ — fruit
• خَيْرٌ — good
• قُرْبٌ — nearness
• فَرَجٌ — relief
• عَظِيمٌ — great
• بَاسِمٌ — smiling
• مَحَلٌّ — place
• يَأْسٌ — despair
• قَاتِمٌ — dark